We took photographs of the grassed area behind the National Monument that was used for the Rally, on 27 March beforehand and on 30 March afterwards to assess the impact of the event.
The Rally filled the whole area up to and beyond the National Monument Circuit (tarmacked path) and up to the Arthur’s Seat Viewpoint. Our estimate was 5,000 plus people.
Our conclusion based on photographs was that the impact was minimal, especially in the central area inside the National Monument circuit where the majority of people were standing. (This is similar to the limited impact after the Beltane Festival on 30 April 2025.)
In the past we’ve pointed out that the erosion of grassed areas is caused by a combination of factors — over-cutting of the grass, damage caused by vehicles, weather factors (very dry or very wet) and footfall.
The last event that caused significant surface damage was the Samhuinn on 31 October 2025 when the ground was wet and muddy.